Kruger National
Park is one of South Africa's largest tourist
attractions. It provides a wonderful combination
of scenic beauty, game, comfort and wildlife atmosphere.

It
was the first national park to be proclaimed in South
Africa and is probably the best known park in the
world. It is therefore very popular among local and
international visitors. This un spoilt nature reserve
covers an area of 21 497 km² and provides sanctuary
to large numbers of game.

Kruger
National Park Safari Programmes

(3
Days / 2 Nights) Greater Kruger Safari

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(3
Days / 2 Nights) Kruger National Park Safari

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(4
Days /3 Nights) Greater Kruger Safari

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(4
Days / 2 Nights) Kruger National Park Safari

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(5
Days / 2 Nights) Kruger National Park Safari

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(5
Days / 4 Nights) Kruger and Private Game Lodge

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(7
Day / 6 Nights) In-Depth Kruger National Park

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(7
Days / 6 Nights) Kruger and Victoria Falls Safari

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(7
Days / 6 Nights) Greater Kruger and Zululand

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(9
Days / 8 Nights) Kruger and Zululand Safari

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Kruger
National Park

Kruger
National ParkHistory

The Kruger Park
was named after President Paul Kruger who started
the creation of wild life sanctuaries in South Africa
in the 1890's. An area near the Pongolo River and
an area near the present-day Shingwedzi camp were
declared game reserves in 1889.

In 1895 the Sabie
Game Reserve was proclaimed. It can be seen as the
forerunner of the Kruger National Park. Today the
park is much larger. It is approximately 100 km
wide and stretches over 380 km from the Limpopo
River in the north to the Crocodile River in the
south.

Eventually the
Kruger National Park will be part
of a peace park known as the Greater Limpopo Transfrontier
Park (GLTP) which will cover an area of 100 000
km². The GLTP will include Kruger as well as
Zimbabwe's Gonarezhou National Park and Mozambique's
Limpopo National Park as well as internationally
renowned private game reserves such as Timbavati,
Sabie-Sand, Manyeleti and Klaserie.

The removal of the
fence on the western side of Kruger Park in 1994
ensured a flow of game between the park and the
above mentioned adjoining private game reserves.
The removal of the fence on the eastern side will
again allow game to follow the traditional migrating
routes.

Kruger
National ParkEntry

Access is gained
through eight different gates: Paul Kruger Gate,
Mbabeni, Malelane Gate and Crocodile Bridge are
the gates in the southern part of the park.

Orpen Gate and Phalaborwa
serve the central part of the park. The northern
part of the park can be reached via Punda Maria
and Pafuri.

Kruger
National ParkElevation

The
altitude varies from 260m to 839m above sea level;
the average height is 300m. The surface is fairly
flat with occasional hills and lonely rocky outcrops.

The
Lebombo Mountains lie in the east and large hills
can be found around Berg-en-Dal and Pretoriuskop rest
camps. Hills also occur in the region of Olifants
and Letaba rest camps while rocky hills (tors) occur
in the vicinity of Punda Maria and Pafuri rest camps.

Kruger
National ParkRivers

Several large rivers
flow through the Kruger National Park,
namely the Limpopo, Sand, Crocodile, Letaba, Olifants,
Timbavati, Sabie, Shingwedzi, Luvuvhu and the Mbyamiti
Rivers. Most of the rivers flow from west to east,
which indicate the general slope of the area.

Kruger
National ParkWeather

The climate of the
park is subtropical – winters are mild and
summer temperatures are often higher than 40°C.
December and January are the warmest months, while
the coldest temperatures are recorded during June
and July.

The average temperature
of summer days is about 30°C and the average
day temperature during winter is 18°C. Winter
days are normally clear and sunny.

Summer rainfall
occurs from September - the average annual rainfall
varies from 375 mm in the north to 750 mm in the
south. Sudden rainstorms often occur in the afternoons
to relieve the suffocating daytime heat.

Warm and dry cycles,
8 to 12 years each, have been recorded by meteorologists.
Most visitors undertake early morning and late afternoon
drives. Winter is the best time for game-viewing
because the grass is short and does not obscure
the view, but the lush vegetation of summer is also
attractive to some.

Many animals lamb
or calve during summer when nature can provide for
the young. Many migrating birds can be seen in the
Kruger National Park during summer when food and
water are abundant.

Kruger
National ParkVegetation

More than 23 000
plant species have been recorded within the Kruger
Park. The vegetation is mainly bushveld and varies
from grassland to bush. Predominant trees are acacias
(south of the Olifants River), marula (in the dry
northern region) lead wood (in the Satara region),
bush willow (in the southwestern parts – around
Skukuza), mopane (around Punda Maria) and baobab
(in the Pafuri region).

It has been calculated
that 191 300 kg of grass is eaten daily by zebras
and wildebeest in the park! Different grass types
include Tamboekie grass (Hyperthelia dissolata),
Rooigras (Themeda triandra) and Buffelgras (Panicum
maximum).

Kruger
National ParkWildlife

Virtually all southern
African antelope roam the Kruger National
Park and often fall prey to predators such
as lions, leopards, cheetahs, wild dogs and hyenas.
Black and white rhinos can be found here as well
as large numbers of elephants, hippos and giraffes.

Baboons and monkeys
and lots of other smaller animals can often be seen.
493 bird species, 114 reptile species and 49 fresh
water fish species, 33 amphibian species and 227
species of butterfly have been recorded.

Lions are scattered
through the Kruger , but the highest concentration
occurs in the central region and around Lower-Sabie
and Crocodile Bridge rest camps. Leopards are seldom
seen because of their shyness and habit to hunt
at night.

Cheetahs can be
found on the open plains and are more often seen,
because they are more active during the day. Wild
dogs are nomadic and are abundant nowhere, but they
prefer the flat areas close to Malelane. The howling
sounds of jackals and hyena can be heard at night
at most of the rest camps.

Kruger
National ParkBirds

Ostriches, Martial
eagles, Saddle-billed storks, Giant eagle-owls,
and Koribustards are known as the Big 5 Birds of
Kruger.

The top 5 water
birds are the African finfoot, the African spoonbill,
the Goliath heron, the Open-billed stork and the
Knob-billed duck. The top 5 raptors of the Kruger
National Park comprises of the following: the Bateleur
and the Martial eagle, the Tawny eagle, the African
fish-eagle and the African hawk-eagle.

Kruger
National ParkLodgings

There are 2302 km
of tarred and gravel roads in the park that take
visitors to waterholes, picnic spots and viewing
points.

There are 14 public
rest camps complete with shops and restaurants available
for tourists. Five small camps and five remote bushveld
camps provide private accommodation. Skukuza, Pretoriuskop,
Lower Sabie, Crocodile Bridge, Jock-of-the Bushveld
and Berg-en-Dal are the largest camps in the southern
part of the Kruger National Park.

In the central
part of the park the large camps are Satara, Olifants,
Nwanetsi, Orpen, Roodewal, Balule and Letaba. Shingwedzi,
Boulders and Punda Maria provide accommodation in
the northern region. Private accommodation is also
available for those undergoing a conservation course.

Accommodation ranges
from luxurious to basic and even includes camping
and caravan facilities. The rondavels and bungalows
fit in with the wilderness and contribute to the
bushveld atmosphere.